Don't Dream Too Deep
by ForeverBlossom
Summary: While on the hunt for a sorceress, what will happen when things take a turn for the worst? Or so it seems. SLASH - Arthur/Merlin Warnings inside.


**WARNING:** This is is **SLASH**. If you do not like, then do not read. If you happen to still read it, even after knowing it is SLASH, then that is your own fault, so please, do not flame me because you do not like my choice in pairings. Thank you.

**Pairings: **Arthur/Merlin (Merthur)

**Rating: **T for mild violence and language

**Category: **Hurt/Comfort, General, Romance

**Disclaimer: **Merlin and its characters are not mine, sadly.

~#~#~

Merlin hummed lightly to himself as he continued his chore of cleaning Arthur's room. He huffed lightly as he picked up another shirt that was thrown carelessly on the ground.

_Really, can he not pick up after himself just a little?_ Merlin thought absentmindedly before he shook his head of his thoughts, simply throwing the dirty shirt over his arm to be placed with the other dirty clothes that he would take down to get washed.

So entranced in his humming and reprimanding thoughts every now and then, the Warlock jumped and nearly squeaked at the sound of the bedroom door suddenly slamming open. Quickly turning around, Merlin watched as Arthur nearly stormed into the room before plopping ungracefully into his chair, a cute and slightly childish pout on the blonds strong features.

Growing curious, and just a bit concerned for the prince's sudden entrance, the raven haired servant took a couple cautious steps towards the other male.

"Arthur? Is everything alright?" Almost instantly, blazing blue eyes turned and focused on him. Merlin just managed to stop himself from flinching from the fierceness in the sharp gaze.

When his eyes landed on Merlin, Arthur suddenly felt his whole being relax at his servant's presence. Blinking as he finally registered the other's question, Arthur groaned before falling back into his chair.

"Yes, Merlin. Everything is fine." He answered as he closed his eyes, a heavy sigh escaping his lips. Clearly not believing the prince's words, Merlin set down his things for a moment before he moved closer to the blond male, placing a hand on Arthur's shoulder.

Arthur's eyes opened at the feel of Merlin's touch. He looked up at his servant, a faint questioning look within his blue eyes.

"Come on Arthur, I know you better than that. Something is troubling you." Inwardly taken aback at the fact that Merlin could read him so well Arthur released another heavy sigh before adverting his eyes to the table top.

"There is word of a Sorceress raiding the lands of farmers up North. My father wants us to go and put a stop to it." Merlin inwardly winced at the prince's words. Squeezing Arthur's shoulder for a split second, he then slowly withdrew his hand.

"When does he want us to leave?" Arthur looked up at Merlin, a tired look in his eyes.

"Tomorrow." Mentally kicking Uther a couple of times for putting Arthur through so much lately, he sighed as well.

"Best get some rest then, Sire." With that said Merlin stood up and walked over to where he had set down his things, gathering them all up before leaving the room to let Arthur get settled for bed.

"Did you get the horses all set, Merlin?" Arthur called as he walked into the stable to check on his clumsy servant. Though he actually grew fond of those little moments, but he would never admit it, especially to Merlin.

The young Warlock grunted as he tightened another strap on one of the horses. Sighing, he wiped his forehead with his sleeve, brushing away the few drops of sweat that had appeared.

"Yes Sire, everything is ready." Nodding his head in acceptance Arthur smirked at Merlin.

"Good. Bring them out then, will you?" Glaring halfheartedly at Arthur as the prince turned around and walked out of the stable, Merlin grabbed a hold of his and the blonds' horse's reigns.

"Yes, _Sire_."

Less then twenty minutes later Arthur, Merlin and five of Camelot's knights were off, riding down the dirt road in search of the Sorceress. Truth be told, Merlin was uncertain about the whole thing. At the beginning of the day, an uneasy feeling had been following his all day, making him more anxious as the day fared on.

The small group continued riding through most of the day before they agreed to set camp just miles away from the attacked area, so they may rest and plan for what may or may not happen. In the end they all decided that they would scout the area around the small farmer village before making any kind of move.

"Alright, Serin, I want you and Greer to go along the East side of the lands, while Ware and Wright will cover the West. I will cover the rest." Arthur ordered as he addressed his knights.

"Nolan, I want you to stay here and guard the camp." The blond prince said before he suddenly smirked and leaned towards the knight. "I also want you to keep an eye on Merlin. Just in case."

"Hey! I heard that!" Arthur chuckled at his servants retort before walking over to the ebony haired male, slapping his on the shoulder, causing the young Warlock to stumble a little.

"Ease up, Merlin. It is just a bit of fun. And precaution." Merlin glared halfheartedly at the blonds words.

"Yeah. Right." Laughing once more at his friends' obvious dismay Arthur then moved away from Merlin, grabbing his sword and gear, his expression quickly turning serious.

"Alright men, let's go out there and try to find this thing and stop it." With that said, the crowned prince and the four other knights geared up and began to head out on their way. Just as Arthur was about to push his way through the brush of the forest a hand suddenly grabbed his arm. Turning around, Arthur's curious blue eyes met Merlin's own anxious ones.

"Merlin?" the young Warlock bit his bottom lip, his fingers tightening their grip on Arthur's arm for a split second before letting go all together.

"Be careful, Arthur. I don't like that you are going out on your own. I have a bad feeling about this." Smirking, Arthur turned and faced his servant, waving a dismissive hand.

"Please, Merlin. There is nothing to be worried about. Alright?" Still unconvinced, Merlin merely nodded his head. Nodding his head back Arthur smiled widely. "Right, see you soon." With that said Arthur turned back around and began to make his way through the thick foliage of the forest.

Merlin watched at the blond prince slowly began to disappear behind branches and leaves. Sighing with resolve, Merlin's shoulders slumped just slight before he turned around, his eyes landing on his 'guard' who sat on a large log, sharpening his sword.

Arthur grunted as he pushed a heavy branch out of his path, ducking under it before he released it from his grasp. Exhaling deeply he continued his trek, pushing or cutting braches and such out of his way. Suddenly, something caught his foot, causing the young prince to stumble forward and through a rather large bush and into a small clearing.

Grumbling to himself, Arthur suddenly froze as he heard the sound of faint laughter. Quickly looking up his eyes spotted a cloaked figure a mere ten feet away from him.

"Hello, Young Pendragon. I have been waiting for you." The figure spoke, their voice filled with feigned kindness. Snapping out of his sudden trance, Arthur quickly took a fighting stance, ready for any attacks the Sorceress may throw at him. But his actions were merely met with laughter once more. Growing irritated with the woman's antics, Arthur gripped his sword tightly, ready to charge at any given moment.

"By order of Camelot, I demand that you leave immediately, or face the sentence of death by committing the felony of using magic within these lands." The cloaked woman merely tilted her head off to the side, a vicious smirk playing across her red lips.

When his demand was met with silence, Arthur growled before he suddenly charged forward, sword drawn back and ready to strike. But when he had moved only a few feet, the cloaked woman suddenly disappeared right before his eyes. Skidding to a halt, Arthur quickly looked around him, trying to find any sight of the woman.

All of a sudden, Arthur gasped as he felt something pres into his neck. Before he knew it, he was frozen on the spot, his muscles locking in place.

"Hmm, that is better." A soft voice said from behind the crowned prince. Arthur then felt a small hand rest on his shoulder before moving along his shoulder blades as the Sorceress walked around, stopping just in front of the blond.

"Now, let us see what secrets lie within that pretty little head of yours, shall we?" With that said, the Sorceress lifted her right hand, a faint green glow surrounding said appendage, placing it over Arthur's eyes.

Nearly instantly, Arthur feels a white hot pain shot through his eyes and into his head. Crying out at the sudden pain, the blond inwardly sighed with relief as it vanished nearly as soon as it had appeared.

But as the pain receded, so did Arthur's strength. He felt the spell lift from his body, allowing his to move once more, only to have him fall to his knees. The Sorceress smirked at the prince's weakened state as she continued to dive deeper into the blonds mind.

Arthur felt himself become weaker and weaker, as if the Sorceress was draining all his energy. Unwillingly, Arthur began to feel his consciousness start to fade as well. He struggled to keep his eyes open, but it was futile in doing so. Before the young prince knew it, he was falling into dark oblivion.

Arthur woke with a start, a choked gasp escaping pass his lips as he sucked in a lungful of air, feeling as if he had been robbed of his breath. Shakily pushing himself up off the unforgiving ground, the young prince looked up at the sky, noticing that only a few hours has passed since he had gone out in search of the Sorceress alone.

Suddenly remembering his encounter with said Sorceress, Arthur darted to his feet, sword in hand as he scanned the area around him, looking for any sight of the wretched woman. As he tried to remember exactly what had happened with the Sorceress, Arthur's thoughts soon drifted off towards Merlin. The blond instantly froze.

"Merlin!" Quickly turning around, thoughts of the Sorceress long gone for now, Arthur then raced through the forest and back towards camp, grunting and wincing as a few branches managed to hit him.

As the clearing where they had made camp came into view Arthur pushed himself to go faster, bursting through the bushes on one side of the clearing. He skidded to a stop, his eyes wide with shock at the sight that met him.

All his knights that had boldly come along with him were all lying on the ground, motionless. The blond stared as he breathed heavily from his run, disbelief quickly taking over his body.

A piece of blue catches his eyes, just nearly out of sight. Slowly turning his head, Arthur's breath caught in his throat, his eyes widening even further. Lying motionless on his back, mouth open and lifeless eyes gazing up at the sky, was Merlin.

The clatter of Arthur's sword hitting the ground filled the clearing for a split second, before everything went quiet once more. A second later Arthur was rushing over towards his servant, his hands shaking as he checked for a pulse, the pale skin still faintly warm, trying to find any sign that the young male was still alive. The blond felt his heart constrict as he found none.

Taken by shock, Arthur could only stared down at Merlin's body, unable to take in as to why this had all happened. Finally, snapping out of his trance Arthur suddenly became angry as tears began to gather along his lashes. Reaching down he gripped onto Merlin's shoulders, his fingers biting into the cold skin of the young servant.

"Merlin, damnit, this is no time to be joking around! Get your lazy arse up!" The prince growled as he shook Merlin just slightly, as if he would wake like he was sleeping. "Get up, Merlin!"

Arthur paused his shaking, his breathe becoming rapid as Merlin simply lay there, unmoving. The anger that had consumed him suddenly vanished, leaving only grief and despair.

"Come on, Merlin. Wake up. You're hopeless without me. Wake up, please." The blond pleaded, the tears blurring his vision for a second before they finally spilled over, running down his slightly flushed cheeks.

When his pleas were only met with silence Arthur chocked back a sob as he stared down at his servant and friend. Shaking his head in denial he shook the other boy once more, but it did nothing to help.

Feeling like he had failed his friend in protecting him, Arthur slowly wrapped his arms around Merlin's shoulders before lifting him up off the ground, pulling the faintly warm body in to his chest, his chin resting on the head of ebony hair as he subconsciously rocked the two back and forth.

_Merlin, come back. Don't leave me. Please._

Merlin quietly pushed his way from the brush as he watched the Sorceress they had been sent out to hunt down continued to manipulate Arthur's mind. He stopped and hid himself behind a bush, wanting to wait a second to make sure he wasn't going to hurt Arthur should he attack.

"Hmm, your mind is full of interesting things, Young Pendragon." The Sorceress stated absentmindedly as she stared down at the crowned prince who was kneeling down before her in his weakened state.

Not wanting to wait any longer, should the Sorceress decide to hurt the blond, Merlin quickly raised his right hand at the woman, eyes turning from blue to gold. Just a mere second later the Sorceress was thrown away from Arthur and straight into a large surrounding tree, breaking the link into the prince's mind. The force of the hit evidently knocked her out as she simply landed on the ground his a hard thump.

Darting out from his hiding spot Merlin rushed over to Arthur, rolling the prince over onto his back. Quickly looking over him Merlin sighed with relief when he found no wounds on Arthur's body.

"Arthur. Arthur, wake up." Merlin said, trying to get the prince to awaken, even going so far as to pat his on the cheek a few times. Finally, after what seemed to be a worthless attempt, the blond prince began to stir.

Arthur groaned as he regained consciousness, his head pounding along to the beat of his heart. Reaching up he rubbed his head, trying to ease the pain, unsuccessfully. Opening his eyes, he winced as the sunlight irritated them, causing him to wince at the sharp contrast.

As he squinted at the light he suddenly took notice of the dark blur next to him. In too much pain to care if it was friend or foe, Arthur tried to focus his vision as it blurred in and out on the figure.

"Who are you?" Arthur heard the figure huff as it moved, as if it was sitting back a little.

"Well, that's quite insulting,_ prat_." The crowned prince froze, his eyes widening, ignoring the sting it caused. He knew that voice. But . . . it couldn't be. Forcing his eyes to focus he was met with the sight of Merlin hovering over him, an irritated but also concerned look within his vibrant blue eyes. Wide and _**alive**_blue eyes.

Merlin watched with confusion as multiple emotions passed through Arthur's eyes, including disbelief, awe, shock, anger, relief, and a couple Merlin couldn't quite place. The young Warlock grew even more concerned, and slightly curious, as Arthur then raised his hand towards him, the prince's fingertips barley brushing against Merlin's cheek. Arthur's eyes widened just a bit more at the feel of Merlin's _warm_ skin.

"You're real." The soft whisper was nearly missed, but Merlin was able to catch it. Just as Merlin opened his mouth, about to question the blonds' actions, the hand suddenly left his cheek, only to come back and smack him upside the head.

_It . . . it wasn't real. None of it. He's still alive! _

The dark haired boy yelped at the sudden hit and pain, rubbing at the abused spot as he glared at Arthur as the prince pushed himself up in a sitting position.

"Ow! What the bloody hell was that for?" The young servant yelped once more as Arthur's arms suddenly shot out towards him. Merlin flinched, believing that he was going to be hit again, but was surprised when he felt the arms wrap around him, pulling him straight into a broad chest.

Grunting at the impact, Merlin just sat there, his lower face pressed into Arthur's shoulder as the young prince buried his face in his dark locks. Taken aback by the others sudden show of affection, Merlin's eyebrows drew together.

"Arthur?" The Warlock's words were only met with the feel of the blonds' grip tightening around him. Shifting, subtly trying to get out of the tight grip, Merlin placed a hand on Arthur's shoulder.

"Don't leave." Stopping all movement, Merlin blinked a couple of times, not sure if he had heard right. "Don't leave me." Yeah, he heard right.

Slowly drawing back from Arthur's chest, Merlin was once more taken aback as he spotted tears within the prince's eyes. In the few years he has been beside Arthur, he has not once seen the prince cry like this, especially in his presence.

Eyes softening, Merlin pulled his arms back before reaching up, cupping the blonds' face. Pushing his thumbs lightly under the others eyes, Merlin gently brushed away the gathering tears. He watched with both amusement and fondness Arthur adverted his red, puffy eyes, most likely embarrassed for showing any sign of weakness.

"Hey, look at me." Merlin cajoled softly. Refusing at first, Arthur soon lifted his eyes to meet Merlin's own blue ones once more. Smiling warmly, Merlin leaned forward a little.

"I'm not going anywhere. Got that?" When Arthur nodded his head, barley noticeable, Merlin's smile soon turned into a wide grin. "Good. Besides, you would be a complete wreck without me." A choked laugh escaped Arthur as he heard the words, much like his own, he had uttered to 'Merlin' earlier.

Laughing too at his own words Merlin stopped brushing under Arthur's eyes as the tears began to stop. Arthur then suddenly leaned forward, tugging Merlin down into a light but passionate kiss. Merlin's eyes widened for a second before he quickly melted into the kiss, eyes sliding shut. Seconds later as they pulled apart, Arthur suddenly gives Merlin a curious look, one eyebrow raised.

"Merlin, how is it exactly that you found me?" Blue eyes widening, the young servant suddenly gave the prince a sheepish and guilty look.

"I, well . . . may have . . . knocked out the knight before coming after you." Merlin flinched as he finished speaking, shrinking back a little, unsure on how Arthur will take what he did. He was both surprised and confused as Arthur abruptly began to laugh whole heartedly before managing to calm himself a minute later.

"You really are an idiot, Merlin." Feeling insulted, Merlin huffed as he quickly pulled away from the blond, his arms crossed over his chest as he glared at the chuckling prince.

"I will have you know that if I did not do it then you would be de-" Merlin was cut off when Arthur leaned forward and placed a kiss on his pouting lips, effectively stopping his rant. Reluctantly, Merlin pressed back into he kiss, inwardly cursing the prince for being a great kisser.

When they pulled away once more, Merlin glared halfheartedly at Arthur as the blond smirked at him, a pleased look on his strong features.

"You know, you cannot just kiss me every time I am mad at you or when you are in trouble." Arthur raised an eyebrow at the ebony haired male.

"When? Don't you mean if." Merlin shook his head before he smirked back at the prince.

"No, _when_." Chuckling, Arthur reached out and carded his hand through the hair at the base of Merlin's skull, smirking a bit wider when the Warlock's eyes fluttered at the sensation.

"Hmm, we shall see." With that said both Arthur and Merlin leaned in for another kiss, smiling together as their lips touched once more.


End file.
